1. Field of the Invention
This invention generally relates to a thumb guard and method of protecting tissues of the thumb and hand from injury. The invention is particularly useful for persons whose activities require prolonged use of the thumb in handling various objects, such as a painter holding a paint bucket for long periods of time in a secure position with his thumb hooked under or over the bucket for stability for the paint bucket while the user's fingers engage the bucket.
2. Description of the Prior Art
Guards have been known to protect portions of the hand including the thumb from injury during various activities. One example is U.S. Pat. No. 6,012,165 to Cain which discloses a rigid thumb guard made of metal or a durable composite material of sufficient strength to protect a thumb from a hammer blow.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,517,692 to Wunderlich-Kehm discloses a specially configured thumb protector designed to provide a manicurist with protection against chafing irritation or injury from repeated contact with a nail file, or emory board.
The guards described above serve as some protection to prevent a person's thumb from being contacted by objects that may damage the skin and thumbnail. These guards do not protect the subcutaneous tissues of the thumb and hand from the stress of constant pressure that can cause injuries.
A number of muscles and ligaments cooperate within the thumb to allow for a wide range of motion. Such muscles and ligaments include the ulnar collateral ligament of the thumb, the first dorsal interosseous muscle, the opponens pollicis muscle, the adductor pollicis muscle, and abductor pollicis brevis muscle. These muscles and ligaments are generally located in the palmar region of the hand between the thumb and wrist. Sustained, prolonged force and pressure against the area of the thumb may place much stress on the tissues and cause residual pain and even protracted injury.
In addition to muscle and ligament damage, damage to the skin, subcutaneous tissue, radial digital vein, artery and nerve and to the joint capsule of the metacarpal phalangeal joint is also a risk due to stress brought on by sustained, prolonged, narrowly focused pressure against certain areas of the thumb.
Therefore, there is a real need in the art for a thumb guard which not only provides cushioned protection for the dermal areas of the thumb from abrasive-type injuries, but also provides protection from stress-related, deep tissue injuries when the thumb is exposed to prolonged periods of use, such as occurs when a painter holds a paint bucket with the thumb being used to engage the bucket bail in order to stabilize support of the bucket.